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Science for Kids Blog

Whether you’re heading to a patch or the store, the time is right for getting your Halloween Pumpkins. But how long will that pumpkin last after it’s carved? No one wants a rotten pumpkin on their stoop or windowsill (although sometimes they can look amazingly creepy).

We did a bit of research and found a bunch of suggestions on the internet for pumpkin prep that should keep our jack-o-lanterns from falling in on themselves...at least for a bit longer than expected. A popular suggestion is to dunk the pumpkin in a bleach-water solution (theory: bleach kills bacteria/mold). Others recommended applying petroleum jelly to the carved parts (theory: applying the jelly will prevent mold growth and drying), so we’ll give that a shot too. The last will be cooking oil, also rubbed on the pumpkin (theory: oil keeps the pumpkin from drying out).

As scientists, we love to test theories. And as Science Guys, we love to make it Fun, Cool and Easy! SO we’ll be carving 4 pumpkins (a control with nothing done to it, and one for each “preservation” method) and documenting how they look from the date of carving until Halloween. Keep an eye on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for our updates. Hopefully we’ll be closer to our conclusion before you carve your pumpkin this year!

DAY 1: Meet our Pumpkins!

Thank you to Brownie Troop #11016 out of Locust Point, who helped us clean and carve our pumpkins last night! "Harry Potter" soaked in bleach water for about an hour, "The Kitty Cat" was slathered in Petroleum Jelly, and "The Puppy Dog" got a nice bath in Vegetable Oil. Our "Frankenstein's Son" pumpkin is our control, so we did nothing but carve it.